EMILIO PALMA, THE FIRST CHILD IN THE HISTORY OF ANTARCTICA WHO WAS BORN IN 1978

The first human to be born on the continent of Antarctica was Emilio Marcos Palma, born on January 7, 1978, at the Argentine Army's Esperanza base near the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. and his father, Captain Jorge Emilio Palma, was the head of the Argentine army contingent at the base. In late 1977, Sylvia Morela de Palma, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was airlifted to Esperanza base to carry out her pregnancy at the base. At the time Britain, Chile and Argentina (all signatories to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959) were competing to ratify the sovereignty of the icy island. One way for the government to demonstrate its commitment and aura of authority was to populate the land with indigenous citizens. Emilio was automatically granted Argentine citizenship by the government as both his parents were Argentine citizens.

He is featured in the Guinness Book of Records as the first person in history to have been born on the continent.